The nice folks over at NHPTV had to endure quite a recovery from the power outages caused by last weeks ice storm. Unfortunately, only the Analog transmitter has a generator. The digital transmitter did not have power until 4 days after the storm.
The power is back now on digital channel 11 and after February 17, 2009, the digital transmitter will have backup power. So this issue should be avoided in the future.
Thanks to Brian Sheppard at NHPTV for the update.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Channel 13 - WGME - still can't get High Def right
It is really hard to believe that after all this time WGME can't seem to broadcast in high definition when they are supposed to.
If you are a regular on this site you know the troubles we have had with WGME that go way, way back. At one point, it was almost on a nightly basis that I would have to call the control room at WGME to tell them they were not broadcasting in HD, only to have someone there flip the HD switch and hang up without ever asking me who I was or how I knew.
Terry Cole, the General Manager, finally caught on and invited me to come and see their operation. I wrote to him so many times that he actually was interested in fixing the problem. He was, at one time, concerned with the public's perception of their station. During my visit I actually saw the "HD button" which is akin to an on/off switch on the control board. There are a few times during that day that the network feeds from CBS are in HD, and therefore the control room needs to manually switch over to broadcasting in HD. But somehow, they don't get it right and it takes a phone call from me; someone who has no connection to the television industry whatsoever other than I watch TV, to let them know something is wrong.
This happened again last night. I don't even remember the show. Whatever is on CBS at 8:00 was not in HD but should have been. I called and asked to be connected to the control room. Once again I spoke to someone who did not give me his name (I think it was "Chip" and he was munching on a Kit-Kat bar). I explained that WGME was not broadcasting in HD but should be. I was watching channel 13 as I was on the phone. Suddenly the picture burst into full HD color and sound. I don't believe I even got a thank you for letting him know.
In the past, someone along the line would try and convince me how complicated it is. But I have toured this station and as I said, saw the HD "on/off" button. A monkey could do it. Maybe WGME should hire monkey.
If you are a regular on this site you know the troubles we have had with WGME that go way, way back. At one point, it was almost on a nightly basis that I would have to call the control room at WGME to tell them they were not broadcasting in HD, only to have someone there flip the HD switch and hang up without ever asking me who I was or how I knew.
Terry Cole, the General Manager, finally caught on and invited me to come and see their operation. I wrote to him so many times that he actually was interested in fixing the problem. He was, at one time, concerned with the public's perception of their station. During my visit I actually saw the "HD button" which is akin to an on/off switch on the control board. There are a few times during that day that the network feeds from CBS are in HD, and therefore the control room needs to manually switch over to broadcasting in HD. But somehow, they don't get it right and it takes a phone call from me; someone who has no connection to the television industry whatsoever other than I watch TV, to let them know something is wrong.
This happened again last night. I don't even remember the show. Whatever is on CBS at 8:00 was not in HD but should have been. I called and asked to be connected to the control room. Once again I spoke to someone who did not give me his name (I think it was "Chip" and he was munching on a Kit-Kat bar). I explained that WGME was not broadcasting in HD but should be. I was watching channel 13 as I was on the phone. Suddenly the picture burst into full HD color and sound. I don't believe I even got a thank you for letting him know.
In the past, someone along the line would try and convince me how complicated it is. But I have toured this station and as I said, saw the HD "on/off" button. A monkey could do it. Maybe WGME should hire monkey.
Frustrations abound with the conversion to digital TV
One of the most avid participants of the Maine HDTV community is a guy named Dave from north/central Maine. I was recently going through my email and discovered that since August of this year, Dave and I have emailed back and forth 63 times. I have tried to assist him in any way possible and have given him lots of advice and suggestions for avenues he could try.
Dave has been struggling with the loss of reception when he started using a digital converter box. Since all of the channels he should be receiving are broadcasting in digital, he should not have a problem. However, as we have found out, when it comes to digital TV and HDTV nothing is as simple as it might sound.
This all started quite some time ago. I don't even remember when. I do remember Dave contacting me through the forum with lots of questions and he was frustrated at how much wasn't working.
Maine television stations, the Maine Association of Broadcasters, and the FCC all say that there are not any reception issues to speak of. Their party line is that if you were able to receive the analog signals, you should be able to receive the digital signals.
As Dave and many others have found out this is simply not true. And I take it personally that I have not been able to help more. I have some decent contacts in the business but sometimes you just reach a dead end.
Dave contacted WVII - Channel 7 in Bangor, Maine when he realized he could not receive their digital signal. They said they couldn't help him except to say he was on the "fringe" of their coverage area and there was nothing they could do to help. Dave then tried to get ABC out of New York from his satellite provider. He had to apply for a waiver and was eventually turned down so now he will be left with no ABC channel after the February 17, 2009 conversion.
There is a small chance that Dave might be able to receive WMTW-Channel 8 out of Portland depending on WMTW's signal strength at the time of conversion.
So after many email and phone calls to television stations, the Maine Associate of Broadcasters, and a reporter doing a story on this forum as it related to the digital conversion, Dave is still frustrated that nobody in the TV industry seems to care how many viewers will actually lose signals after the conversion. Dave is not the only person with these problems. We have received emails for all over Maine, New Hampshire, and from around the country - even from other countries.
Unfortunately, and as usual, it is the less fortunate, the elderly, or anyone on a fixed income that will lose out on the deal. These are the people who can't afford expensive rooftop antennas, a new digital TV, and a monthly cable bill. And some don't have Internet access to even reach a site like this to get resource information.
I'm sure Dave and I will still communicate as we all go through this together. This site has received a lot of traffic lately. And I suspect it will only increase as we get closer to conversion time and as the economy weakens. In economic downturns, one thing that gets cut from family budgets is cable TV. Those that haven't been paying attention, because they didn't have to, will suddenly find themselves in a position where their older TV set won't receive a signal without cable and without a converter box. They will need information and resources to understand everything they have not been paying attention to. We at the Maine HDTV Forum are here to help. We have tons of articles about how things work and even a 6 part online tutorial for beginners.
As we near February 17, 2009, we need to keep in mind that this is not the end. In some cases it will only be the beginning as the fallout appears.
My recent conversation with Dave reminded me how precarious TV still is we aren't even aware of some of the problems people will encounter during the transition.
Take care and thanks for stopping by.
Dave has been struggling with the loss of reception when he started using a digital converter box. Since all of the channels he should be receiving are broadcasting in digital, he should not have a problem. However, as we have found out, when it comes to digital TV and HDTV nothing is as simple as it might sound.
This all started quite some time ago. I don't even remember when. I do remember Dave contacting me through the forum with lots of questions and he was frustrated at how much wasn't working.
Maine television stations, the Maine Association of Broadcasters, and the FCC all say that there are not any reception issues to speak of. Their party line is that if you were able to receive the analog signals, you should be able to receive the digital signals.
As Dave and many others have found out this is simply not true. And I take it personally that I have not been able to help more. I have some decent contacts in the business but sometimes you just reach a dead end.
Dave contacted WVII - Channel 7 in Bangor, Maine when he realized he could not receive their digital signal. They said they couldn't help him except to say he was on the "fringe" of their coverage area and there was nothing they could do to help. Dave then tried to get ABC out of New York from his satellite provider. He had to apply for a waiver and was eventually turned down so now he will be left with no ABC channel after the February 17, 2009 conversion.
There is a small chance that Dave might be able to receive WMTW-Channel 8 out of Portland depending on WMTW's signal strength at the time of conversion.
So after many email and phone calls to television stations, the Maine Associate of Broadcasters, and a reporter doing a story on this forum as it related to the digital conversion, Dave is still frustrated that nobody in the TV industry seems to care how many viewers will actually lose signals after the conversion. Dave is not the only person with these problems. We have received emails for all over Maine, New Hampshire, and from around the country - even from other countries.
Unfortunately, and as usual, it is the less fortunate, the elderly, or anyone on a fixed income that will lose out on the deal. These are the people who can't afford expensive rooftop antennas, a new digital TV, and a monthly cable bill. And some don't have Internet access to even reach a site like this to get resource information.
I'm sure Dave and I will still communicate as we all go through this together. This site has received a lot of traffic lately. And I suspect it will only increase as we get closer to conversion time and as the economy weakens. In economic downturns, one thing that gets cut from family budgets is cable TV. Those that haven't been paying attention, because they didn't have to, will suddenly find themselves in a position where their older TV set won't receive a signal without cable and without a converter box. They will need information and resources to understand everything they have not been paying attention to. We at the Maine HDTV Forum are here to help. We have tons of articles about how things work and even a 6 part online tutorial for beginners.
As we near February 17, 2009, we need to keep in mind that this is not the end. In some cases it will only be the beginning as the fallout appears.
My recent conversation with Dave reminded me how precarious TV still is we aren't even aware of some of the problems people will encounter during the transition.
Take care and thanks for stopping by.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
WPXT and WPME have plans for their subchannels
By now you may know that digital TV stations can broadcast more than one signal. Depending on their configuration they can broadcast 2, 3, or 4 programs at the same time.
In Portland, Maine, the local ABC and NBC affiliates use one sub-channel for News and Weather. Nothing yet on CBS.
We also have a CW affiliate and a MyNetwork affiliate (WPXT and WPME respectively). WPXT, Channel 51 has reserved the right to broadcast RTN (Retro Television Network) on a sub-channel. They won't do so until they get a cable company to carry the channel as most viewers get their TV from cable, not by antenna. WPME, Channel 35, broadcasts special, locally-produced programming on a sub-channel called the "Maine Visitors Channel". If you use an antenna to pick up free digital/HD television, you can tune to 35.2 to view this channel. Primarily, it was produced for broadcast to Hotels and Motels in the Portland area so that visitors to Maine could find out about Events, Restaurants, and other points of interest in the area. The financial model works because the programming is essentially advertising for which businesses pay to get a piece produced and run on the network. Visitors see the many different mini-info-mercials which generate business. WPME doesn't need a cable or satellite company to broadcast this channel in order for WPME to make money. The target audience is staying in lodging facilities where the signal for channel 35.2 is beamed in.
In Portland, Maine, the local ABC and NBC affiliates use one sub-channel for News and Weather. Nothing yet on CBS.
We also have a CW affiliate and a MyNetwork affiliate (WPXT and WPME respectively). WPXT, Channel 51 has reserved the right to broadcast RTN (Retro Television Network) on a sub-channel. They won't do so until they get a cable company to carry the channel as most viewers get their TV from cable, not by antenna. WPME, Channel 35, broadcasts special, locally-produced programming on a sub-channel called the "Maine Visitors Channel". If you use an antenna to pick up free digital/HD television, you can tune to 35.2 to view this channel. Primarily, it was produced for broadcast to Hotels and Motels in the Portland area so that visitors to Maine could find out about Events, Restaurants, and other points of interest in the area. The financial model works because the programming is essentially advertising for which businesses pay to get a piece produced and run on the network. Visitors see the many different mini-info-mercials which generate business. WPME doesn't need a cable or satellite company to broadcast this channel in order for WPME to make money. The target audience is staying in lodging facilities where the signal for channel 35.2 is beamed in.
Converter Box Coupons from DTVAnwers.com
If you plan on getting coupons from the government (FCC) through the DTVAnswers.com web site or the accompanying 1-888-DTV-2009 phone number, make sure you plan on using them as soon as you get them. The same is true if you already have applied fir or already have received your coupons.
The FCC, who runs this program, is very strict. I did not use mine when I got them and they expired. When I tried to use somebody else's name and address I found the most people had already gotten them and figured out they didn't need them so those expired as well.
I called a few local shops and nobody selling the digital converter boxes would accept an expired coupon -- so I was running out of options.
Luckily I found one person who had just applied for her coupons and had not received them yet. Since she ordered two (the max) but would probably only use one, she agreed to give me one when she received them.
If I do get one I plan to go out immediately and buy a converter box. I have one 10 year old television that works just fine but won't after February 17th, 2009. I don't use it much but if I ever want to use it as a backup, give it to somebody, or let somebody borrow it, I want to make sure that it will work with a converter box.
The moral of this story is - Don't hesitate. If you have coupons go buy your converter box now. They are not fooling around with the expiration dates (you get 90 days) and replacing them using somebody else's name and address could prove impossible.
The FCC, who runs this program, is very strict. I did not use mine when I got them and they expired. When I tried to use somebody else's name and address I found the most people had already gotten them and figured out they didn't need them so those expired as well.
I called a few local shops and nobody selling the digital converter boxes would accept an expired coupon -- so I was running out of options.
Luckily I found one person who had just applied for her coupons and had not received them yet. Since she ordered two (the max) but would probably only use one, she agreed to give me one when she received them.
If I do get one I plan to go out immediately and buy a converter box. I have one 10 year old television that works just fine but won't after February 17th, 2009. I don't use it much but if I ever want to use it as a backup, give it to somebody, or let somebody borrow it, I want to make sure that it will work with a converter box.
The moral of this story is - Don't hesitate. If you have coupons go buy your converter box now. They are not fooling around with the expiration dates (you get 90 days) and replacing them using somebody else's name and address could prove impossible.
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